Matrox Box Splits One Monitor Into Two

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On Tuesday, Matrox Graphics announced a breakout box capable of splitting a VGA output so that two monitors can be attached to a single VGA connection.

According to Matrox, the technology will allow environments where only one VGA output and graphics card is available, such as a laptop computer, to enjoy the benefits of a multimonitor setup.

The Matrox DualHead2Go box will ship in mid-November for an estimated price of $169, and will be available worldwide.

The box fools the PC into thinking that a single high-resolution widescreen monitor is attached; for example, a 2560 x 1024 virtual “display” would be split into two 1280 x 1024 monitors that could be placed side by side.

“An increasing number of professionals are using laptops as their main computer, but they still want the advantages of a multi-display workstation while at the office,” said Dan Wood, vice president of technical marketing at Matrox Graphics Inc., in a statement. “DualHead2Go is a breakthrough product that solves this need by creating a cost-effective, space-saving, multi-display docking station for a laptop. Since DualHead2Go is an external upgrade, it’s also ideal for adding an extra display to a closed, already validated, mission-critical system or to computers with no available expansion slots.”

Users should visit the company’s DualHead website for a list of compatible laptop models, according to Matrox. In addition, the technology is currently restricted to desktop PCs with certain specified integrated graphics chipsets. At press time, all of the supported desktop chipsets were manufactured by Intel.

The DualHead2Go box uses the PCs native graphics acceleration to process the dual monitors. A patent is pending, Matrox said.

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